Hellsing: Dancing Shadows
by Kylandor
Summary: When another incident similar to Cheddar happens so soon after the Bonnie & Clyde incident, Seras finds a human vampire hunter taking out one midian only for a second to brutally and fatally injure him. She decides to save his life seemingly at the cost of his humanity. But as events play out choices will have to be made, hard choices. Alters the OVA series slightly.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1 : Instincts & Heretics.

"The Human shall beware the Nosferatu lest he be devoured. The Nosferatu shall beware the Human for their souls can burn brighter than the sun itself."

* * *

 **Foreword: This takes place primarily during the OVA series' timeline with some room for discrepancies.**

 **Timeline: After the "Bonnie & Clyde" Incident and before/during the first encounter with Alexander Anderson.**

 **It will primarily focus on the POV of an OC who will get involved with Hellsing's operations.**

 **There will be blood, violence, gore, some foul language and religious themes, if you cannot stand these then I'm confused as to why you're even looking at Hellsing fanfics yet alone having an interest in Hellsing itself.**

 **Enjoy.**

* * *

POV - Ray Zenji : Occupation : Freelance Vampire Hunter : Beliefs : Roman Catholicism : Ethnic : 50% Hispanic, 25% Portuguese, various others including Scottish & Aztec : Nationality : United States of America. : Age : 23.

* * *

Location : London Outskirts

* * *

Sighing as he looked at the estranged Church on this hill, just like another incident that was horribly covered up (To his opinion) a person of the night was using the cover as a priest.

He was dressed in a black trenchcoat with a dragon-skin vest underneath, far better then Kevlar. His black cargo pants were also layered with kevlar for protection with it being interwoven to avoid too much drain in mobility. A black belt was around his waist and resting on the left was a katana with a white rattlesnake pattern for the sheath and grip with black wrappings. The blade itself was sitting in a sheath filled with Holy Water whilst the blade itself was made of stainless steel and thus would not rust, it was well maintained and sharper than a guillotine. Concealed in his coat was a M1911A1 Colt .45 with silver rounds instead of conventional lead rounds, each clip held 7 rounds.

He sighed and opened the doors to the church casually, around his neck was a scapular, five in fact (Red, Blue, Green, White and Brown) interwoven along a red cord along with a silver crucifix and a silver immaculate medal, since this was a catholic church the "Priest" at the other end of the interior did not seem surprised and said "Welcome so-"

Ray interrupted him, saying "Shut up. I'm not here for your consul, rather to cleanse this place of your stink. You've been popping up all over the place but mostly here in the United Kingdom."

The priest looked at him, his eyes stark red and he formed a grin that was malevolent in intent and then said "So, you know? Let me guess, those pathetic humans from hellsing sent you to deal with me?"

Ray shrugged and said "So they do exist. I'm a freelancer kid, I've killed enough of your kind to get my own reputation in the United States but I decided heading to the source would be better. Enough banter, talking with a false priest is getting on my nerves."

Ray drew his pistol and the Vampire grinned and waved his arms out as if daring him to shoot, Ray fired two rounds at his shoulders as if toying with the vampire, the silver rounds ripped through the Vampire and actually injured him, the Vampire shouted something about turning him into a ghoul though Ray had ignored it as the Vampire charged at him.

Drawing and slashing with one fluid motion using his Katana, both the blessed steel and the holy water drawn out with it cut clean though the vampire before it turned to ash.

Ray sheathed his blade and bent over to pick up his pistol which he dropped to more quickly use his blade and placed it in his trenchcoat with the safety turned back on. Turning around Ray noticed a shifting shadow above him and barely dodged to avoid being impaled by a decorative spear.

The vampire looked at him, long brown hair and a casual outfit, probably someone the vampire priest turned and she confirmed it when she said "So my Master couldn't beat a human, how pathetic. Tell me boy, are you a virgin?"

Ray sighed and replied "Looking to turn me are you? Fine, I'll admit that I am, not that it'll make any difference."

The Draculina smiled with her fangs in open view and Ray quickly drew his gun and fired though the vampiress was too fast to keep his aim.

Ray holstered his pistol after expending the magazine and rather than reload he positioned himself to draw and slash, doing his best to keep an eye on his agile prey.

Immediately however the Vampiress noticed his tactic and vaulted the decorative spear at Ray, impaling him through the liver. Ray bit his lip to suck in the pain and charged at the now unarmed Vampiress, if this was his last hunt he would make damn sure his prey did not escape or survive.

Drawing and slashing the Vampiress evaded the first strike though the scattered holy water burned her left arm and charged at Ray who quickly shifted to a defensive stance though he was slowing in his movements due to the blood loss and the toxins in the liver mixing with the rest of his system.

Managing to block her pounce he avoided being bit though he was no longer strong enough to push her off. He did have a last resort and as he was about to dig into his jacket regardless of the fact that it would leave him vulnerable, suddenly the vampiress' head was blown clean off, the shell that went through and overpenetrated, blasting a hole in the back of the church as well.

Ray sighed as the corpse turned into ash and he sheathed his blade and looked at the decorative spear that was going through his lower abdomen and muttered a curse word before pushing the spear through further until it was out the other end and then walked to one of the pews and sat down as a blonde woman entered with a large 20mm rifle over her shoulder, her eyes were a shining blue color and her yellow uniform gave away her affiliation, Hellsing.

He had heard the rumors upon entering the UK, rumors of monsters dying and media outlets receiving either government pressure or even hush money and of course like with this hunt, from the mouths of his prey.

Ray reached into his pocket and pulled out a pure leaf Cigar and set it in his mouth and grabbed a match though decided not to light it and put the match away and merely bit into the cigar before saying "Shit, is this really the end?" and looking at the approaching woman before looking at the cross adorning the back of the church, gracefully spared the stray shot that tore through the vampiress' head like a needle popping an overfilled water balloon.

The woman noticed his injury and rushed over shouting "We need an ambulance now! Hang on!" Ray chuckled a bit and replied "Don't bother, my liver is probably shredded beyond all repair." He then pointed down and the woman looked on in horror, there was a pool of blood that was getting larger, pouring from his torn abdomen. Something else stirred in her as she gripped her hands, Ray noticed this and his eyes widened before he relaxed and said "Hey, you don't indulge yourself do you." The woman looked at him with surprise, his eyes however were not filled with hate or fear but rather peace as he continued to speak, saying "I've known good vampires as well as the rogues. Not all of them indulge themselves the way these people do. I can tell because you have, the same eyes..." He was losing consciousness, unable to finish what he wanted to say.

As he closed his eyes, the last sight he had were tears running down her eyes which had turned red.

A voice, calm and soft asked him the same question the second target asked him.

He barely managed to nod his head once before losing the strength to act any further, almost immediately after however, a sudden though not massive jolt of pain filled his neck. He had lost too much blood to open his eyes and to be honest his body was in shock, he wasn't feeling anything around the shredded abdomen and the rest of his senses were dulled.

Sleep overcame him, but instead of being before the Lord he had a dream of that woman, a simple one with her looking at him with her red eyes and grinning, her fangs showing themselves. Another figure that he had never seen before made itself known behind her, as if her superior in some way.

He was clad in fancy clothes with mostly red colors and dyes. He wore some kind of sunglasses and a fedora, his black hair was moderately long (Excessively long considering the person was male.)

A grin made itself known from the figure before it faded, the woman's image soon after that.

* * *

The following night.

* * *

Ray woke and immediately grabbed his abdomen which was no longer torn asunder. The area looked slightly dim and that of a basement or dungeon. Looking at a mirror near his bed he noticed his dark brown eyes had turned red, he immediately checked his teeth, running his finger along them and noticed fangs. He then sighed and moved to the edge of the bed, he was dressed simply, implying his old clothes were elsewhere and he surveyed the room, noticing his tools of the trade on a table near his bed.

His sword was sheathed, his Colt .45 was also there, unloaded but there in addition to the C4 package wrapped in silver chains (though his detonator was missing)

He could overhear voices across the room and beyond it's door which was saying something for his change since he was hearing impaired beforehand. It then hit him that the woman who killed his second target had turned him. He knew he was turned but did not remember who until now that his senses were restored.

He focused his hearing making out a conversation between probably four people. Two voices were feminine and two were masculine, one was deeper than the others.

"You're lucky he didn't turn into a ghoul Seras." said the deeper male voice, one of the female voices replied "It wasn't luck. He told me the answer to the question. I couldn't just let him die!" the other female voice then said "I understand losing your entire squad that day was harsh, but could you consider the possibility that you lost control."

He had heard enough and sat up before heading to the door and opened it.

Four people were there.

An elderly man with a monocle as well as what appeared to be a butler's uniform, Ray's enhanced eyesight made out wires wrapped around his gloves and fingers though they were not protruding. He had a calm and polite demeanor.

A woman in her 20s most likely, light blonde hair opposed to the other woman's brighter orange hinted blonde hair. She wore glasses and was dressed in a suit, her hair went down to her waistline and she was smoking a cigar.

The woman who saved him before, based on the conversation she was likely Seras. Her hair was an orange like blonde in a short yet oddly styled manner.

The tall man from his dream, he was grinning as if he were amused at this situation. Ray could sense a dark and foreboding aura from him as well, he was most definitely a vampire, one unlike any he's faced before.

Their conversation had been interrupted by his presence and he politely introduced himself, saying "My name is Ray Zenji, thank you for your hospitality and for saving my life."

This polite introduction seemed to catch Seras off-guard whilst the others didn't seem to care. The other woman spoke, saying "Sir Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing. The woman who kept you alive is Seras Victoria."

Seras nodded and was seemingly in an embarrassed mood based on her facial expression though it was directed at herself, likely because Integra had chewed her out over turning him into the very thing he hunts down.

The older man made a slight aristocratic bow and said "I am Walter C. Dornez and I am the butler of the Hellsing family. I have watched over this mansion for the better part of my life."

The larger man chuckled slightly and faded through the walls, not introducing himself.

Seras then said "Don't mind him, he does that often. That was Alucard, my master." Ray rose an eyebrow and said "I see, then we are both servant vampires at this point. I do have the mental tic to use that word to define you but I will choose not to. So, this is the infamous Hellsing Organization?"

Integra looked at him and crossed her arms, saying "How do you know about us. As far as the public is concerned this is merely a private estate." Ray sighed and said "From the mouths of sinners I suppose. Every Vampire I've put down here in the UK assumed I was with Hellsing."

Integra replied "I see, I've had time to do a brief background check on you, if you wouldn't mind me reciting it?"

Ray shook his head and said "Go ahead, I don't have much to hide and the few things I do have to hide you probably haven't uncovered.

Integra resumed speaking after hearing his answer, saying "Raymond Zenji, age 23, born in the West Coast of the United States in March, you survived cancer when you were 6 and you have since then been free of the disease. Your activities were mostly online gaming and some writing on a site dedicated to fan fiction though all official records ceased last year in the month of march and you were declared a Missing Person. The FBI and other law enforcement agencies have ceased their searches. It seems you've had quite a list of celebrity friends as well. You are currently here under the alias Ray Smith and your travel visa is due for renewal in six weeks."

Ray grinned slightly and said "Like I said, you haven't uncovered any of the things I genuinely wish to hide. The way I see things Integra is that we have a common enemy, seeing as I'm now a person of the night it would be best for me to remain here as you have two vampires in your organization so I'll assume you can provide for our unique tastes without putting others in danger."

Integra nodded and said "Yes we do have the means to accommodate you. I would like to ask however how you came to become a Vampire Hunter, your equipment was specialized for vampire hunting, except for your sword."

Ray replied "I had my blade blessed by a Bishop in San Francisco and I fill the sheath with Holy Water prior to a hunt, the weapon is stainless steel so it will never rust." Seras looked at the blade sitting on the table behind Ray and said "I have to ask, it seems unusual that you would have a Japanese Sword, where did you get it?" Ray shrugged and said "My father bought it for me at some sale when we were on vacation once. I had a whole set with two smaller swords but I kept those at home."

Seras kept looking at it for a moment whilst Integra said "I take it then that you are Catholic?" Ray nodded and said "Yes I am, is that going to be a problem?"

Integra shook her head slightly and replied "Actually that is what I would have asked you concerning Hellsing. We are primarily a Protestant organization, we have been at odds with the secret division of the Vatican, Iscariot, for some time. They view us as heretics and enemies though we do have an agreement to respect eachother's jurisdictions, the United Kingdom is under our authority and thus they tend to stay out of the country."

Ray sighed and said "Iscariot huh? I've encountered one of their numbers before and thus I learned about their organization. For a while I believed I could join them until I had a 'disagreement' with the woman who I met back then. You needn't worry about my faith, Iscariot is filled with fanatical heretics as far as I'm concerned, Jesus teaches the way of peace and forgiveness. The wrath of God is God's alone to dispense, we mere humans have no right or authority to claim it as a justification. As far as my opinion of Protestants goes, I have no hostility towards you, sure you have some things wrong but It's not my place to judge, our disagreements aside I'll just let God deal with you though if I have the opportunity I will correct you. All men and women can be saved, we are all sinners, even firebrands such as me."

Both Integra and Walter were surprised at his response whilst Seras didn't seem to have a strong opinion either way though she did listen closely. Integra grinned and said "I see, I think I may actually look forward to the next time I have to talk with those Vatican pigs." Ray frowned and said "I would appreciate it if you did not insult my faith. I will admit, people are people, they can become corrupted, this goes too as well with those in the Vatican's Section XIII, they are however not true representatives of the faith. I do prefer to call them hypocrites most of the time."

Integra nodded and said "I see, I'll try not to offend you too much then."

Ray decided to take that answer and nodded as he turned to look at Seras for a moment before saying "Well I don't suppose it would be too much to ask for some food, real food that is."

"Oh? I thought you were aware of Vampires. You didn't know you cannot eat human food once turned?" said a deep voice coming from the wall, apparently Alucard had not left earshot range as he made himself known once more, phasing through the wall into sight.

Ray sighed and said "I am aware that human food tastes bitter to a vampire's tongue but I've always had a thing for bitter foods anyway. I can still eat it and digest it, it might not sustain me but it's not gonna kill me either."

Alucard replied, grin still on his face "I see, I suppose trying to hold onto your humanity passed onto you from the Police Girl when she turned you. If you want to reach your true potential, to become a true vampire then you must discard all sympathy, all mercy and all of your humanity."

Ray sighed and replied "If it wasn't for the obvious level of power you're projecting I'd be tempted to put you down for that speech. My body may have changed Alucard but my soul remains what it is. Perhaps you should keep that in mind."

Alucard chuckled a bit before again disappearing into the wall, amused by Ray's response.

Seras sighed and said "He's always saying things like that."

* * *

Time passes

* * *

Ray blew on the soup a bit before taking a bite, indeed it was bitter despite being chicken soup without too much salt. Ray experimented with various spices, pepper, salt, basil and others before finally making it taste enjoyable, close to what it should normally taste like. He pondered for a moment what it may actually taste like with that much pepper and salt thrust into it, it would probably make him vomit if his taste buds were human though once he had properly spiced it he dug in without hesitation, repeating similar experiments with other foods. He found drinks unaffected (mostly) by his new nature though he did admit he no longer felt as much strength to alcohol as before though it still did have an effect, if only a quarter of what it once was.

After finishing his meal he noticed Seras in her yellow uniform (he also noticed that it wasn't preferable for agile combat or durability, it was horribly inefficient though he had seen worse in some of the anime he had seen, he almost laughed at the thought of schoolgirls with short skimpy skirts fighting demons. That kind of attire in the real world would only serve to get you killed, devoured or ghosted (a term he used for being turned into a ghoul)) and got up and stretched, she was outfitted with her 20mm and Alucard walked in as well, saying "So, ready for your first day of hunting your own kind?"

Ray sighed and made a simple shooing motion with his hand, saying "It's not the first time I've fought vampires. I assume you two have a mission and you're going to drag me along with it. If so, where's the poor bastard we're after?"

Alucard replied "Northern Ireland, and do remember you are in the police girl's service, you can fight your nature only for so long before it overcomes you."

Ray ignored the comment on his nature and headed to his room, noticing his bed was replaced with a coffin which irritated him, he brushed it off and geared up with his black trenchcoat (now repaired from the gash inflicted upon it by the vampire at the church), dragon skin armor, additional kevlar to protect his lower abdomen which was exposed last time as well as his sword and gun. He grabbed a bottle of holy water and filled the scabbard to the brim before sheathing the blade and resting it on his left hipside before walking out, he was outfitted with three magazines for his pistol (which was also fully loaded, making a total of 4 including the loaded mag.)

* * *

Two nights later, Northern Ireland.

* * *

The mansion was infested with ghouls though their target had yet to be identified. Alucard was showing exceptional, nay, masterful use of his .454 Casull handgun, never missing. Seras had barged in whilst Alucard was reloading and used her 20mm to assault the ghouls ahead of her, she moved fluidly and with an animalistic ferocity that Ray was probably sure she wasn't even aware of.

Alucard was watching his protege tear the ghouls ahead apart whilst Ray joined it, making precision headshots with his M1911A1 as Alucard reloaded and began opening up on the ghouls again.

Not long was it that the floor had been cleared. Alucard seemed proud of his protege's primal combat instincts and his face seemed basking until what appeared to be a Bayonet impaled her throat, several others darted at her though none pierced her vitals.

Both Ray and Alucard shifted their attention to another individual, a large man probably slighter taller if not the same height as Alucard himself, he had blonde hair and his skin was a dark tone, he was holding two bayonets in a cross like formation reciting something from the bible as he menacingly walked up to the trio.

Ray sighed as he said "Let me guess, based on your weapons and appearance you must be Father Alexander Anderson of Iscariot."

Anderson stopped his menacing approach but maintained his crossed swords pose as he said "Oh, you seem familiar, have we met before?" Ray shook his head and said "I haven't had the pleasure, however you may have heard of me from a colleague, Yumie Takagi, we ended up hunting the same group of midians that were plaguing the small town of Weaverville in California a few months ago."

Anderson grinned and said "I see, now it makes sense, you must be the dancing shadow she spoke of. Tell me then why you are with these two of Hellsing. Furthermore they are vampires, shouldn't you be unleashing God's divine wrath upon them right now?"

Ray shook his head as his eyes changed tone from dark brown to crimson red as he said "They are also hunting down vampires, we share common interests. I suppose Takagi must not have informed you of my beliefs. Your organization, Iscariot goes too far, you have no right to claim to be instruments of God's wrath. That is something only the Lord may dispense. We are merely humans, fighting an alien enemy that is just as diverse as the rest of us. Sadly yes most of them are bloodsucking scumbags but not all of them are like that. Besides I owe Seras for saving my life, helping her take out the trash is the least I could do."

Anderson frowned slightly and said "I see, so you've abandoned your humanity just to live a little longer. This I cannot abide, nor would the Lord either. Prepare to die with the rest of them!"

Ray sighed and drew his blade as Anderson made a charge though before Ray could act further Alucard charged in and began barraging at Anderson with his Casull, his face painted with a larger grin than normal, he was enjoying this fight as Anderson slashed with one bayonet from above and thrust the second at Alucard's abdomen (His upper slash deflected by Alucard's Casull.).

Seras looked onward and was motionless, partly due to having many blessed bayonets piercing her and also her instinctive devotion to her Master.

Ray sheathed his blade and walked over to Seras and bent over, pulling the bayonets from her one by one despite the burning sensation (and actual third degree burns) the bayonets inflicted upon his hands.

After less than a minute he removed the offending armaments as Seras rubbed her throat. She brought her 30mm to bare and took a shot at Anderson. The 20mm ripped right through his chest and he fell back, seemingly dead. Ray focused his eyesight and noticed Anderson was still breathing, whether Alucard was aware of this or not he didn't project but Seras had assumed he was down. Alucard holstered his casull and turned to walk towards Seras, saying "Well, with this over we can finish hunting the trash that made these ghouls."

"Oh, I already dealt with him." said Anderson.

Seras and Alucard refocused their attention on the should-be dead man whilst Alucard also said "I see, so you're a regenerator."

Anderson stood up as his wound healed quickly and said "That's right, thanks to the miracles of both God and Science I've become the one being who can slay your kind with ease. I am an instrument of his most divine and just wrath! Let me show you!"

Anderson charged at Alucard and was seemingly winning this fight as Alucard opened fire to little effect.

Seras tried to open fire again but Anderson threw a bayonet, disarming her of the 20mm and quickly filled the area with pages of the bible staked into the walls. Ray felt what could best be described as a electrical feel from them as they formed for a moment, a surge of yellow electric like energy before the visual energy faded but not the actual energy. Ray assumed correctly it was some type of anti-midian barrier and he helped Seras up, saying "Looks like we're not getting out of here without a fight. Let Alucard handle the clos-"

Just as Ray was about to finish speaking Anderson had pinned Alucard to a windowed wall and swiftly decapitated him and pierced his heart with one of the bayonets, Alucard's head dropped to the ground and rolled aross the hallway, stopping at Seras' feet as Anderson began yelling, saying "This was Hellsing's trump card? Their Ace in the Hole? The legendary Alucard? What a joke! He fell way too easily, I can barely believe it, how has Hellsing stayed alive with this piece of trash as their strongest weapon?"

Ray took advantage of Anderson's rant and immediately tackled the petrified Seras and darted down the hallway, avoiding getting too close to the edges of the barrier. Anderson turned around and grinned before shouting "Run all you like! I'll find you! It's time for you to join your master in hell!"

Seras was screaming, Ray didn't pay attention as to what she was screaming, something along the lines of put me down and other things about her master, Alucard. Ray felt stupid, having overestimated Alucard's aura or perhaps he underestimated Anderson, regardless it was now life or death and he dropped Seras and then kicked open the door to the roof only to notice more pages flutter around and form a barrier at the edges of the building's roof, there was no escape.

Ray grabbed Seras' hand as she was about to stumble back down the stairs and he flung her across the roof hoping to toss her out of harms way before the barrier closed in though alas, it was too late as she hit the barrier and bounced back against the ground, she was still awake and managed to sit up but she was not standing, still petrified by what had occurred and shocked at Ray's newfound agility.

Ray shut the door behind him and prepared himself in the center of the roof between the door and Seras and begun drawing his sword and entering a formal stance, his eyes glaring red and he was grating his teeth slightly, fangs protruding out as the door was sliced to pieces and Anderson walked a short distance from the now destroyed door, his blades crossed again and a sadistic smile across his face.

"Any last words?"

Ray grinned and said "Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I shall fear no evil, for thou art with me."

Anderson paused for a moment before saying "So you were a Catholic before all this, why not just accept death, allow me to free you from this curse. I can sense you still believe in the Lord our God."

Ray replied "I can't do that, I refuse to simply lie down and die. Furthermore I'm not going to let you kill my Master so easily, crap, I said it. Regardless Father Anderson, this is a duel I will not back away from, I'm interested in seeing the difference in our swordsmanship, despite our disagreements Takagi did teach me a few things about how to wield a Katana."

Anderson nodded and said "Ask and ye shall receive."

* * *

To be continued...


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 : A Dancing Shadow.

"Where there is light there must also be shadow."

* * *

Location: Northern Ireland

* * *

Ray slowly moved his sword to a up to down facing position as Anderson charged at him with his bayonets extended and cutting along the rooftop whilst Ray kept a close eye on Anderson's arms and legs, watching for a change in motion and when it came Ray dashed to the side, barely avoiding being cut through as Anderson slashed both bayonets in an X formation before shifting his position and began attacking repetitively to which Ray responded by defending himself with his Katana, Ray could swear Anderson was attacking at an inhuman pace but his newfound agility seemed to be enough to hold his own for a moment at least.

Anderson dashed back and threw at least 12 bayonets which curved mid-flight to strike from multiple angles which forced Ray to roll to the side with his blade in a defensive position to avoid most and deflect some though one embedded itself in his liver though aside from acute pain and a feeling as if the blade were on fire there was little effect, it must be his heart for a fatal injury.

Ray recovered quickly and darted to the side to retain a position between Anderson and Seras and he focused his sword grip in his right hand and drew from his coat his Colt .45 and fired a pair of rounds at Anderson's head though he deflected them with the bayonets. Ray charged forward, holding the blade in a reverse hold and firing again, this time at Anderson's hands, disarming him of one bayonet just as he ran out of ammo and completing the charge he slashed forward with the blade only for Anderson to block it with his other bayonet as Ray dropped his pistol and made a slight jump back.

Despite his usual level of skill he was not making any ground against Anderson, either his opponent was far more skilled than he looked or Ray was getting weaker and this seemed to be the case, it was probably to be expected as he had lost a substantial amount of blood from his fatal injury and had yet to replace it since becoming a person of the night but still, Anderson was very skilled indeed and the fact that Ray had survived this long was a miracle at best.

Ray again charged forward and began dueling Anderson who after deflecting a sixth strike jumped back and scattered more pages of the good book about, forming a restraining barrier around Ray who found it nearly impossible to move afterwards.

He looked back at Seras and rather than having a face of regret or defeat he seemed to be measuring something before grinning and turning back to Anderson who was approaching slowly with his blades crossed whilst saying "You put up a good fight but I don't see the same level of skill Yumie mentioned, I'll assume you haven't been feeding since I can sense the exhaustion on you. Ready yourself for judgement."

Ray managed to fight the barrier enough to grab a remote detonator from his coat which surprised Anderson.

Ray grinned and said "Sorry but this ends here, I will admit my instincts are telling me to protect Seras but there is something personal here as well, she reminds me of someone else who had to live with this curse and recognized it for what it was. Indeed I haven't fed and I doubt I will."

Before Anderson could reply and before Ray activated his last resort a familiar sound made itself known, the discharge of a .454 Casull.

Anderson was hit by several rounds which also shattered his bayonets as he turned to face Alucard, seemingly unharmed (though lacking his hat this time) and grinning massively.

The sound of a helicopter made itself known as one approached and hovered over the rooftop, it was just a short jump away for Integra and two Hellsing bodyguards.

Ray sighed with relief as he put the detonator away, he was likely going to have to get another one since the first one he had to steal back though still, it wasn't Integra's presence that felt reassuring but rather Alucard's.

Integra spoke, saying "Alexander Anderson, Iscariot's top enforcer. You are violating our agreement, you have no authority here."

Alexander was ignoring Integra, looking on specifically at Alucard who was grinning and seemingly waiting for any excuse to resume the fight. As he was now it seemed, Anderson was not powerful enough to take him on if conventional tactics would not work. He turned to look at Ray for a moment, dissatisfied for some reason not so much at his strength but his choices.

Ray sheathed his blade as Anderson grinned and said "It seems I cannot defeat Alucard as I am now, make no mistake though, I will be back to finish this fight. Protestant rabble should not be in North Ireland, this is catholic territory."

Before they could respond, he disappeared in a flutter of bible pages, withdrawing from the fight. Ray exhaled again and took a look at the pages around him which were no longer emanating any power, likely being restricted to proximity to their user.

* * *

The following Night, Hellsing Mansion.

* * *

Ray sighed as he stared at the ice bucket before grabbing the pouch and sinking his teeth into it and proceeding to drain it quickly, once he was done he tossed it to the side. It wasn't that he was irritated at himself but really that he finally understood the thirst and felt even more compassion for the ones who never asked for this, pity in the cases of those who lost control.

Staring at the coffin he sighed and kicked it with newfound strength, slamming it against the wall and splitting it in two as well. Even from when he first woke he wasn't like this though still he felt it was lacking, perhaps if they had properly given him a transfusion to replace that much lost blood he would know what his full potential was but still he was somewhat afraid of seeing that potential.

He opened the door, unable to rest at night and proceeded towards the stairs only to run into Seras who stopped walking when she noticed him.

She spoke, saying "Ray, may I ask a question?" Ray merely nodded and she resumed speaking, saying "Just before I turned you, you mentioned something about my eyes and when that priest attacked us in Ireland you mentioned knowing someone like me."

Ray nodded and replied "Yeah, Alice Kesari. She wasn't the same as the other vampires I had encountered, quite truthfully she was the first I encountered and I guess she was closer to Alucard actually but that was only because she was a daywalker, the sun had no effect on her though I never saw her fight anyone so I am unsure if she has the same level of power as Alucard."

Seras listened and spoke, saying "Is she the reason you began hunting vampires?" Ray replied "I suppose but not in the way you may think. She didn't do anything to me or to anyone I knew. Truth be told I suppose I was in love with her for a while, I was able to quench her thirst with a blood transfusion kit for some time until some Neo-Nazi took her down with a musket, I've searched high and low but still haven't found Alice's killer or even a motive for as to why she would kill her, since that person was also a vampiress."

Seras was silent for a moment before saying "Oh, I'm sorry." Ray shook his head and said "It's fine, I suppose talking about it helps keep my memory of her alive and well."

More questions loomed in Seras' mind such as Ray's past experiences with Iscariot though Ray's expression was somewhat saying he no longer wished to talk about the past so she decided to keep heading to her own room whilst Ray resumed heading upstairs.

"I find it difficult to believe that miss Kesari would abstain from feeding directly." came Alucard's voice as he phased through the wall to appear in front of Ray halfway up the stairs.

Ray took at short glance at Alucard before saying "You knew her?"

Alucard merely grinned and said "For a short time, a short time for those with our lifespans that is. On one occasion I took her form to deal with a group in the mid 40s although I must admit the expressions we make are nowhere near alike. She drank without care or regret so I find it difficult to believe your tale."

Ray replied "Aren't you the progenitor Dracula? The backwards name is a poor alias. If so then merely read my mind and know the truth. I never knew much about Alice's past since she rarely confided in me about such things though I had suspected she was older than she let on."

Alucard spoke again, saying "It's not just that, you are correct in believing she was very much like me. The things I can do so can she do as she has probably devoured as many as I have. I find it odd that she would recklessly allow herself to be put down by some musket wielding trash."

Ray resumed walking, moving to the side to go around Alucard as he said "The bullet curved and sped about in a rapid fashion as if controlled by dark magic. But based on what I saw in her face after one day, it seemed she had lost the will to live."

Alucard's grin disappeared for a moment as he turned around and said "Would you really have ended your own life to try and stop that priest?"

Ray stopped his movement for a moment before nodding once and saying "There was no way I could have escaped that restraining barrier, I wasn't about to let him kill a defenseless woman."

Alucard grinned again and said "Oh? I admit the police girl does have far to go but I wouldn't say defenseless. Perhaps you have less control over your instincts than you claim."

Before Ray could reply Alucard phased through the wall once more.

* * *

Flashback - Several Months Ago. Location : Northern California, United States.

* * *

Ray kicked off the vampire from his blade just before it turned to ash, back then he was dressed with a leather jacket and a woodland camo hat with black sweats.

Sheathing the blade in it's water filled scabbard he heard a shout across the night and darted in that direction whilst drawing his pistol.

Turning into a large open plaza with several stores, some open this late, he noticed a woman effortlessly slash through six ghouls with a Katana, she seemed to be dressed casually though the look on her face when she moved about spoke that she didn't normally dress like that, she was probably between 27 and 31, Japanese and no stranger to combat, vampires or ghouls as she had no fear but rather a bloodlust about her though not a vamparic one, more that of the call to war a warrior feels so often.

A ghoul holding a pistol snuck from the darkness and fired with terrible accuracy and Ray dispatched it with a headshot from his silver loaded pistol and reloaded it, having apparently used his last bullet in that magazine.

Putting the pistol away he dashed with his blade and quickly hacked through a ghoul and then stood back facing the Japanese woman who let out a sadistic grin as she charged at the remaining ghouls with reckless abandon, leaving Ray puzzled as to her methods of battle until he noticed something about her that was inhuman.

She was blurring about the parking lot as if distorting space, quickly decapitating and otherwise slashing through the ghouls until she halted slightly, the ghouls were gone, even the ones Ray was facing though now two figures made themselves known, a Vampire and a human hostage.

The male vampire was holding a 15 year old girl hostage, threatening to turn her if they didn't let him leave. Ray was about to draw his pistol for a bid to take the vampire's head before he could act but the Japanese woman was too fast, moving with a blue hued blur and appeared behind the pair as the Vampire's head suddenly slumped off it's parent body and along with the rest of the corpse, turned to ash, the young girl was petrified and unable to move though she was safe.

Ray sighed and sheathed his blade and then said "Hey you, swordswoman. I don't suppose you know who sent that vampire here?"

The woman turned to look at him and shook her head, saying "I dispose of trash, I don't bother with the reason why they litter about."

Ray sighed and looked about the ghoul corpses before looking again at the pile of ash that was the vampire they just took down before looking up at the woman and said "Well perhaps you'd change your mind about that in order to find more trash. Somewhere in the forest there's supposed to be this group of vampires and vampiresses plotting some kind of conspiracy. I was about to track them down until something stirred the hornet's nest, I assume that was you."

Flickering right in front of him with her sword to his throat was the woman who then said "I don't suppose you'd help me find them then?"

He didn't even flinch at the sword, merely replying "Sure, We're probably after the same thing, their deaths. I'm also after some information regarding another vampiress I've been looking for so if you could hold off on finishing at least one of them until I can pry some info from them then I would appreciate that, once they spill their guts you can do as you please."

She must have found that amusing as her grin became larger before she sheathed her blade and said "Fine, just as long as you let me in on anything they give you."

Ray nodded and sighed, looking around him before reaching into his pocket for a cigar as the woman walked off into the night.

Just as he pulled out a match he said to himself "Won't be long now hopefully."

* * *

To be continued...


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 : Incursion.

 **Disclaimer: Additional OCs with minor roles and major roles will be present from here on out. Their names (Such as Alice Kesari) are of my own imagination and if they exist in any fiction or are someone's real name somewhere in the world this is pure coincidence.**

"Blood is more than that which transmits oxygen and nutrients to the body, it is also that which can seal the most firm of contracts, for those who are true Nosferatu, the devoured is not truly dead, their memories, thoughts and personality live on a a separate personality, it should be said than that the true strength is not their power but their ability to preserve their own sense of self."

* * *

Location: London, Present Day. 8:45 pm Local Time.

* * *

Ray walked the moonlit streets of London dressed with his black tenchcoat, the purpose of this walk was to clear his head of old memories.

So long as no incidents occurred he was free to roam at night and after several coffee shops he came across a park with a small pond and found a bench to sit on and stare at the reflected moonlight in the water.

After about an hour he was about ready to get up when someone approached him, he noticed a red glow in her eyes but immediately recognized her face afterwards, the girl he had saved back then during his encounter with Yumie.

Ray sat back down as the girl took a seat next to him and began a conversation, saying "It's been almost a year since that day."

Ray turned to look at her and replied "More or less, have you been able to sustain yourself without an incident?" The girl nodded her head and said "I already had a illness that required regular transfusions, that keeps a steady supply without harming anyone. What about you? I can sense someone turned you."

He looked at the moon directly before saying "A member of some vampire hunter group saved my life by turning me. They supply my needs with donated blood that they keep a supply of. Believe it or not one of them is none other than the legendary Dracula."

The girl gave him a slight push as if disbelieving and then said "You're not serious. Dracula is a myth or perhaps a misunderstood legend." Ray shook his head and said "No, Vladdy, who would probably berate me or kill me for calling him that, is the real deal. Most of Bram Stoker's book was accurate except for the ending. He's much more powerful than the book explains though, probably due to the sheer number of familiars stored within him. I know most about Vampires' truths from the first vampire I knew who apparently Vlad knew personally in the past. I do wonder though if there is any other differences physically between us as you have a chip in your head that rewrote your DNA whilst I was turned by a true vampire though she is still a servant, not a No-Life King."

The girl turned to look at the reflected moonlight in the water before getting up and saying "Well it was good to come across you again, I was too petrified to thank you back then for saving me both from that vampire group and the vampire hunter that you were with."

Ray got up and shrugged, saying "Don't worry too much about it Cathy, I don't see this curse as irredeemable, perhaps one day I'll find the means to reverse it but that's probably just wishful thinking."

She nodded and said "Well still, Thank you. Good luck on your hunts." Ray nodded and walked off back to the urban streets, thinking back to his "disagreement" with Yumie Takagi in the Northern California wilderness regarding what to do about the hostage. That was a tale for another day however, he decided he was done sightseeing and proceeded back to the Hellsing estate.

* * *

Later that week.

* * *

Ray sighed as he drained another pack of donor blood and then proceeded to clench and unclench his hand as if feeling completely rejuvenated since his injury.

The sound of gunfire took his moment of tranquility as he immediately rushed to equip himself with new armaments that Walter had supplied him (He had also supplied Seras and Alucard with new weapons as well including a much larger and black rimmed pistol dubbed Jackal and a 30mm AT Rifle dubbed Harkonnen).

His Colt .45 remained but also a personalized Desert Eagle (Caliber .50 AE) with a blessing ceremony supposedly taken care of in addition to using silver munitions, the weapon was larger than a normal Desert Eagle to accommodate a larger magazine with a capacity of 12 rounds as opposed to 7 or 8. By comparison it was on par with Alucard's .454 Casull but not his Jackal. Several Mk.4 Fragmentation Grenades with silver fragments embedded in a lead shell (The pin was made of brass instead of silver to avoid burning Ray's fingers.).

Ray had managed to convince Integra to let him keep his "Last Resort" in addition to changing his attire slightly to incorporate thick black leather gloves which he tested to success so that for as long as he was wearing those he could hold and operate a silver object (such as Silverware or a silver framed firearm. Most importantly however was the handling of his own sword as the hilt was silver and Ray had to change the way he held the weapon to avoid burning himself.)

Despite the obvious dangers to himself he still filled the scabbard of his blade with Holy Water and even further during the past week he had personally recasted the blade, discovering that it was nowhere near sharp enough to deal with Anderson's bayonets.

Ray kept his scapular and silver crucifix on his neck but now wore a turtleneck to avoid burning himself with the object, he found the scapulars which were cloth also caused a painful sensation though not a deathly one like silver (As if grasping a hot object that is hot enough to hurt but not enough to burn) which was because they were blessed objects. Ray also however noted that sacramental bread and wine did not harm him for some reason despite Bram Stoker's novel stating the opposite and personal experience with Alice Kesari whom Ray had convinced to convert to Catholicism whereas before she was an atheist had convinced him that perhaps the sacred object cliche (which to him is what it seemed like) perhaps had something more to it than a simple blessing.

These thoughts passed by instantly as he suddenly felt a large degree of sorrow and shock despite not knowing the situation, perhaps Seras was unwittingly transmitting these thoughts telepathically?

Ray didn't delve further into the telepathic feeling and came to feel those emotions himself as he saw several Hellsing men fighting an army of Ghouls with riot armor and riot shields in addition to Uzi SMGs, they were being led by a slightly dark toned individual with several facial piercings and an abnormally loud and foul mouth.

Ray shouted to the soldiers, telling them to withdraw and refocus their defenses to Integra, this attack was no random occurrence as there was a Round Table Meeting that was called, Ray noticed another man walking alongside the loudmouth and decided not to face this attack, recognizing him as Lucas "Luke" Valentine, the only one who escaped that incident last year.

The only thing he remembered was that he could not keep pace with him even if in a defensive stance, only Yumie and perhaps Alucard could hope to match his speed, Alexander could probably defeat him as well though still Ray was not confidant even with his new state as Luke had an army to support him this time.

Ray dashed past the gunfire and was spared getting shot by some kind of dumb luck (As those were ordinary lead bullets and thus it would be like getting shot at by BB Guns.)

* * *

POV Shift - Lucas Valentine

* * *

Luke noticed the face of the dashing man amongst Hellsing's ranks and more specifically his attire.

He grinned, getting a second chance to kill the Dancing Shadow though he brushed off that thought, he had a specific mission and thus his opponent was the legendary Alucard, his master's arch enemy. Looking towards his brother Jan he said "Be careful with that one, he's only human but he's killed more vampires than all of Hellsing's current grunts put together."

Jan replied "I don't give a f**k who he is, I'll slaughter him like all the rest."

Luke changed his pace and was heading towards the basement and said "Don't underestimate him, he was able to survive impossible odds though it was his companion back then that forced me to withdraw, she is not here so I doubt you will fail but that being said, be careful not to screw this up."

* * *

POV Shift - Ray Zenji

* * *

Ray had reached the basement and came across Seras who was with some wounded soldiers just as the PA Speaker began sounding with the loudmouth's voice, ranting about how they were going to kill everyone and suggesting that everyone was pissing their pants and some other fruitless insults a 7 year old could retort without a sweat.

Ray looked at Seras and said "I need your help along with anyone else who is able to fight, a proper plan of defense needs to be set up and we need to spread word to aim for the legs and arms of the Ghouls unless they're carrying silver munitions, if we can't kill them we have to immobilize them and disarm them."

Seras nodded and said "Everyone here is in no shape to fight but I'll do what I can. They've cut off our escape though, how will we get into a proper defensive position?"

Walter made himself known, coming from behind and saying "I've already talked with Integra and Alucard about our course of action, there is a series of vents leading to the meeting room where Integra and the members of the round table are at, Integra mapped them out some time ago when she became the head of the Hellsing organization and the three of us should have no trouble fitting through them."

Ray nodded and said "I suppose those wires around your wrists aren't decorative or restraining the gloves. Even I've heard some tales from the others since I aligned myself with your organization, I suppose witnessing the 'Angel of Death' will be an interesting sight."

* * *

Time passed and they managed to get to the third floor via the vents with time to spare, Integra was confident in her bearing and expression whilst the rest seemed fearful of the situation or at the least concerned.

Ray knew the plan, Walter would directly ambush them whilst Seras would provide fire support from a distance and Ray would then support Walter for close range combat.

And it played out perfectly as Ray watched Walter make short work of the attacking ghouls, for a man his age he was surprisingly agile enough to evade gunfire and maintain a fluid motion of attack with the cutting wires he was using (He would not call them piano wires due to the complex materials and thin bladed construction designed solely for slicing through objects of nearly any durability as they easily cut through the riot shields and firearms of the ghouls.

Walter had even fed the loudmouth's words right back him whilst menacingly approaching and dispatching what ghouls remained until a large number quickly arrived and reformed as the loudmouth seemed to begin enjoying this fight, the formation of the shields suggested the wires would likely not be able to make any headway as the phalanx of ghouls advanced though Walter had mentioned for Seras to open fire with her new weapon, the Harkonnen (Which Ray silently noted that it's name was taken from a character from a sci-fi series of games and books, even a movie that he was mildly familiar with) and tore through several lines with one shot before loading an explosive round at Walter's request which then prompted Walter and Ray to move out of the shot's path as it decimated the remaining ghouls that stood before them, leaving only Jan who defiantly charged at them only for Ray to quickly charge and slash with his blade though Jan was able to evade the metal, the holy water that spread out doused the right side of his face, horribly scarring it with third degree burns.

"You little shit! I'm going to kill you wit-"

Ray interrupted Jan's response and made a roundhouse kick which not only shattered Jan's spine (which was a temporary injury for a vampire) but also sent him flying near Seras who then proceeded to restrain him with a maneuver she learned in the Police.

"Shut up already." said Ray as he walked slowly towards Jan whilst sheathing his sword before saying "Nice move, I assume you were in law enforcement before this?' Seras nodded with a smile on her face as she then said "Well there's a reason Master calls me Police Girl."

She tightened her lock on the loudmouth when he complained about his situation as Walter walked towards him and said "Don't presume you've won, nor expect to die so soon. After-all we do need answers, specifically about who you are, who you work for and why you've attacked us."

The loudmouth grinned and headbutted Seras, breaking her concentration and thus giving him room to escape though Walter quickly wrapped his wires around him whilst Ray drew his new Desert Eagle which was silver plated (His thick leather gloves enabling him to wield it as otherwise it would burn his hands) as Walter continued to pull though Jan continued to rush forward, disregarding his now severed left arm though Ray immediately opened fire though Jan was able to evade the shots by ducking into a corner, Ray however rushed forward to pursue, knowing Jan was heading right after Integra.

Turning to the corner he saw a terrible sight indeed, members of Hellsing that had been turned into ghouls and were charging after him, though it had only been a week, a few of them he considered friends though he knew now that they needed to be released, freed from this curse and so he drew his sword and charged directly at them, hacking through them with an ease of motion enhanced by his vamparic state, Seras and Walter came across the corner to witness the sight as Ray moved about, his black trenchcoat fluttering due to the motion, to their eyes it was as Alexander mentioned what his colleague mentioned, a dancing shadow.

* * *

Jan kicked open the door only to face the members of the round table with Integra at the center of the line, all aiming sidearms at him, Integra specifically was smiling as she said "Hello, I am Sir Integra Wingates Hellsing, you've intruded upon private property." and with those words said a hailstorm of bullets erupted into Jan, Integra specifically fired with well placed shots making a cross symbol of injuries in Jan's head that then began to ignite as the bullets were mercury tipped incendiaries though this would not be enough to kill him, it would be enough to immobilize him.

Integra slowly walked up to him as Ray appeared from around the corner, soaked in blood with his eyes glowing stark red as more of Hellsing's members who were turned into ghouls charged at him, the sight horrified both Integra and the round table members who also took notice.

Ray danced with his sword held with one hand (A feat indeed as a Japanese Sword is meant to be wielded with both hands) and his Desert Eagle in the other he quickly dispatched the "reinforcements" with ease and more noticeably, a calm and well disciplined facial expression and as Integra caught her senses again after seeing the sight, Ray had dispatched the remaining ghouls and turned to look at Jan, face still calm and expressionless as he slowly approached with his blood soaked sword, holstering his Desert Eagle in the trenchcoat as Jan grinned, saying "Well this is interesting, my bro said you were human but I guess that changed since he encountered you."

"Shut up."

Said Ray and Integra simultaneously, Ray stopped just 7 feet from Jan whilst Integra stared directly at him and said "I will not kill you, not yet, if you want a quick death then you'll answer my questions immediately. Who are you and why have you attacked Hellsing?"

Jan's grin increased as he looked directly at her and said "You should already know, We've attacked you because of the chip in our heads, We're known as the Valentine brothers and do you really think that the chip merely controls us? It's feeding our masters everything that's going on, all that we see, hear and say. Do you really think they'll let me live when I'm about to tell you f**king everything?"

Ray immediately slashed the air with his sword which removed the blood from it and then pointed it directly at Jan before lowering it to a place it should not be pointed at and said "Speak."

Jan's grin could only get worse as he suddenly lit on fire though the flames were blue, this surprised Integra, Ray and Seras and Walter who had been behind Ray after he dispatched the ghouls, he said "I'll give you, one word. Millennium!" He said the last word with his middle finger extended at Integra's face though before the flames completely consumed him, Ray quickly amputated the risen finger without so much as a snipped hair for Integra who was unshaken by the quick strike, the flames doused and burned any blood that would have slashed about.

Ray sighed and said "Millennium, I think I've encountered a group with that name before."

Integra turned to face Ray and then said "Explain."

Ray nodded and said "It was a year ago, I was searching for the killer of someone who was very close to me and I came to a small town in Northern California where a group of vampires had set up shop in the nearby forests. I worked alongside a member of Iscariot, Yumie Takagi and took them down, one of them mentioned they were working for an organization called Millennium before he erupted into flames like our attacker. I would tell you in detail what happened but we still need to deal with the other attacker."

"That is no longer necessary, I've already taken care of him." came Alucard's voice as he rose from the floor into view.

Ray looked at Alucard and said "I see, he wasn't too much trouble for you was he?"

Alucard replied "No, to be honest I was disappointed, for all that he claimed and for the speed he boasted and wielded he was still trash just like the rest, he could not heal his wounds nor summon any servant demons to battle. By the way Walter, the new gun is working perfectly, I'm confident it will do some real damage the next time I face that priest."

Walter bowed lightly and said "I am glad it's working out to your liking."

Ray looked back at Integra and said "I'll explain my encounter with them at a suitable time, it will take some time to explain though there are probably still some ghouls left in the estate that we should deal with. I will warn you, some of them were members of Hellsing, these bastards turned our own against us after killing them."

Integra nodded and said "Very well, we will deal with the current problem for now, once everything is situated I would like a proper debriefing as well as what you know about Millennium."

One of the members of the round table approached and said "Furthermore, we would like to receive a proper report once this is all taken care of."

* * *

Time passed as any remaining ghouls were cleaned up and funeral services were held, Integra took the responsibility of finishing the incapacitated ghouls that were members of Hellsing and putting them to rest.

Plans were to be made in investigating Millennium and correspondence with Iscariot was likely necessary to a limited extent.

Ray had explained his tale regarding Yumie Takagi and the girl Cathy.

* * *

Flashback - Ray Zenji, one year ago, North California Wilderness

* * *

Ray finished the climb quite easily along with Yumie and he took out a pair of binoculars to examine the series of wooden structures ahead of them, structures that should not be there.

Lowering his binoculars after witnessing no guards (likely as it was now daylight) he said "No daytime guards, which means they aren't using human servants or familiars which is odd in a way, the vampires I've been encountering lately are different, their ghouls do not ash when their victimizer is slain and not all of them turn to ash when they die. Furthermore I've recently uncovered that they have some kind of small chip implanted in their head, I noticed it when taking one out with my blade, the chip was visible in the severed cranium."

Takagi unsheathed her blade and said "I'll be sure to leave at least one or two of them alive for you to interrogate as we agreed, just remember that I will be present during that interrogation and afterwards, they die." Ray nodded and said "I have no complaints with that."

They dashed at the buildings, Yumie with her blade drawn and Ray with his pistol unholstered.

Upon kicking down the doors they found a hatch in one of the buildings leading underground whilst the buildings themselves were empty except with a few trinkets and logging axes.

Descending down the ladder they came across a series of hallways and somehow tripped an alarm as a red light supported by a klaxon was blaring.

Ray and Takagi proceeded down the hallway to a larger room which seemed to be full of rows of hospital beds though all were empty except for one which Ray noticed the occupant was the girl they had saved last night, she was abducted yet again though she was unconscious.

Ray rushed to the bedside and checked her for any signs of injury, she was fine, no IV was inserted and it seemed she was simply laying there asleep in medical scrubs. Ray looked towards Takagi who said "She's not dead, so leave her be, if they wanted her dead she would be by now. They probably haven't gotten to devouring her yet."

Ray sighed and nodded, saying "You're right, I'll lea-"

They were interrupted by gunfire from both exits/entrances to the room which prompted Ray to quickly over turn the table with the girl so as to keep her from being perforated in addition to using it as cover for himself as he blind fired a few rounds whilst Takagi immediately dispatched the attackers behind him.

Ray peeked from the bottom right of the cover and then reloaded and fired precisely taking out the attackers but merely wounding one of them and he got up and fired at his gun, destroying it.

Walking slowly whilst reloading and then holstering his gun he drew his Katana and held it to the vampire's throat only to take a bullet to the shoulder from behind, he turned around quickly and noticed Takagi fighting another vampire, Lucas Valentine (Though at this time Ray had not discovered his name).

Lucas moved with such speed that he left an afterimage most of the time though Yumie's spatial distortion was able to keep up. Ray then sheathed his sword after filling the scabbard with more holy water from a container he kept in his trenchcoat and dashed in their direction, drawing and slashing at the air, spreading the water over a large swath which Luke managed to evade only for Yumie to slash a horizontal cut across his back, prompting him to retreat.

Ray and Yumie both sheathed their blades and walked to the incapacitated vampire Luke failed to save and Ray spoke simply, saying "Who are you working for, and more importantly, who is the musket wielder. I know you are connected to her so do not lie. You can die quickly and painlessly or horribly slow and in acute agony."

The vampire chuckled and said "We've been keeping an eye on you Ray Zenji, a pity you do not know the truth. The woman you seek is a member of our organization, Millennium and her name is Rip van Winkle. You can not hope to avenge your friend if that is what it could be called. Other then that though, you do not need to know anything else."

Prior to any further threat the man erupted in blue flames, preventing any further interrogation.

Ray sighed and walked towards the unconscious girl and noticed she had woken up and her eyes had turned crimson red, she yawned which showed her fangs though she quickly realized her surroundings after waking.

She stared at Ray, recognizing him as one of the people who saved her last night and said "Where am I? What's going on!?" Ray sighed and said "Calm down, the people who took you are no longer a problem, my name is Ray Zenji, what about you?"

She managed to calm down, partly because Ray's voice was consoling and calm despite the odd situation she had found herself in and she replied "Catherine Durandt, everyone calls me Cathy though."

Ray nodded and said "Then I'll call you Cathy then. I'll help you get out of here, the situation should be resolved by now."

"No, it isn't." said Yumie.

Ray helped Cathy up and stared directly at Yumie, saying "There's no bite marks but she's wearing surgical scrubs, my guess is that they inserted a chip into her. She never asked for this."

Cathy felt like she wanted to say something, the idea of something being inserted into her without her knowledge was not a good thing (And it sounded like a computer chip at that, she began to fear various science fiction themes such as mind control to spying on her every move.) Ray looked at the table nearby and said "But it seems they didn't have time to insert an incendiary device since it's laying there on the tray, they can't control her."

Yumie shakes her head and says "That is beside the point, she's now a vampire, regardless of whether or not it was her choice or that the method of turning was different, our path is clear. I told you about Iscariot on the way here, you seemed interested in joining us but you cannot be lukewarm in-"

Ray was done talking and quickly moved himself into an upwards roundhouse kick, hitting Yumie in the head and catching her off-guard and then turned to Cathy and said "Looks like you're going to have to run, I'll explain everything when we're back in town, until then please trust me."

Confused but unsure of anything anymore, the girl merely followed as Ray took her hand and led her out, Yumie was not knocked out but she seemed dazed and confused, before leaving earshot Ray heard her say something in a different tone of voice, more timid.

"Huh, where am I? Why is Yumie asleep?"

* * *

To be continued...

* * *

 **Afterword: To me Jan's defeat in the Hellsing anime far outclassed his defeat in Hellsing Ultimate because of that one detail regarding the pattern of injury (One was intentional the other was just a hailstorm of bullets whereas here I merged the two so that the Round Table members perforated him and Integra skillfully shot a cross pattern into his face with incendiary bullets.)**

\- 'till next time.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 : Personal War.

"Revenge is not something that is easily refused."

* * *

Location: Miami. 9:32 PM Local Time.

* * *

Ray sighed as he returned to the states to pursue a lead on something personal. Alucard and Seras had traveled to Brazil to pursue a lead of Millennium whilst Ray was pursuing his own lead, he had gotten a tip from an old information broker that owed him a favor that a musket wielding vampire was sighted in Miami and that the usual vampire hunters in the area had been missing for more than a month.

He sighed, he had found lodging with an old acquaintance and explained his situation. It was irritating to be forced to travel the night, he had tested his hand against sunlight once and found that though it took time to burn, it did indeed burn him. He also knew that once he completely devoured someone, that weakness would fade from him, it was one of the many things Alice explained to him about the true nature of vampires.

He walked into a bar, tired with investigating rumors and hearsay and decided to relax with a few drinks, Hellsing did provide financial assistance in official matters though this was not an official matter, he was here on his own coin though he had amassed much by taking out vampires.

The bar had only two others there, the bartender and a lone woman with long black hair, Ray immediately noticed she was a vampire as she was doing nothing to hide the aura of energies emanating from her. She took a glance at him and noticed his own vamparic state, she resumed her attention to the glass of bourbon by her.

Sitting down two stools from her Ray asked for a hard cider and was served quickly. The bartender was human though he was oblivious to the nature of his guests.

Ray sighed and drank the cider, the alcohol barely fazing him though still he had a taste for several specific drinks, regardless of the burn.

About 10 minutes later he had finished and as he was getting up to leave, the woman spoke, saying "You know, there are a lot of rumors about a vampire hunter from California who ended up getting turned. I always wondered at his motivations."

He turned to look at the woman, the bartender was starting to realize just who was in his establishment and became slightly concerned, Ray's eyes widened as he recognized the woman, she was out of uniform right now but still, the look in her eyes as she revealed her fangs with a large grinning smile, she was staring directly at him.

Ray sighed and walked out of the bar, not wanting to damage the place and he waited outside, keeping a keen sight on the woman through the window.

After a few moments she walked out and stared at him and began to hum lyrics to some classical song as she slowly approached.

Ray recalled the moment he hated remembering briefly and his eyes began to glow bright red, the moonlight seemed to somehow reflect off his fangs for a brief moment as he let out a grin of his own and charged at the woman whom he had a name for.

Rip van Winkle.

She evaded a choking grab with ease whilst continuing to hum her song, Ray was unarmed right now but so was she, this was perhaps the best chance he had though something seemed off, he didn't feel as if she was his prey, rather that she was the predator.

Could it be?

He stopped lashing out at her like an animal and focused himself into a defensive stance and slowly began to close the distance, keeping an eye on her as she realized he had gotten control over his anger and sighed before saying "I had hoped this dance would last longer."

Ray stopped advancing as she quickly leaped into the air and out of sight, likely along the rooftops. He sighed, rather than follow her he would instead focus on keeping tabs on her, this time he had a better look at her face and could give a better description to his feelers.

Still something bothered him, she didn't seem one to be careless and the grace in which she moved about to evade his attacks which though were not much they were heightened by his newfound speed.

Meaning that she probably started the rumors to draw him out, knowing she was being tracked and hunted.

* * *

London, Two days later.

* * *

Ray sighed as he read the newspaper, Alucard and Seras had made quite a spectacle, mainly Alucard.

Millennium's plans were made known now that Alucard had devoured one of their own and acquired the intel they needed though there was not much left to do but wait for an opportunity.

Ray relaxed in the bed he had personally bought and transported to his room, placing a complex maze of tripwire about it to ensure it isn't snatched up during the night when he's active.

Draining a pouch before tossing it aside he could feel something was going to happen, Alucard was so sure that a war was about to start.

* * *

Much later

* * *

"I'm tagging along." said Ray.

Following an incident in the presence of the Queen, an event Ray was not present for (As he was busy dealing with a few instant vampires that had popped up in London.) he shook his head at the description, he was here for this meeting with Britain's military officials and apparently Walter, Alucard and Integra were discussing the means to get Alucard on an Aircraft Carrier that was hijacked by Millennium, specifically by a musket wielding Vampire who had just shot down the response teams.

Integra looked at Ray before sighing and saying "We don't have two jets to spare."

He sighed and said "Perhaps not two SR-71s, but you can spare an F-117. Alucard is likely to attract their attention and divert attention from van Winkle, I can proceed at a low angle skimming the water, in addition to it's stealth capabilities I will be flying fast and low, I admit though you are going to lose the 117."

Walter sighed and said "Alucard shou-"

"No, let him come, he can hang onto the cockpit from outside." said Alucard, sensing the thoughts in Ray's mind.

Integra sighed and said "At that speed he would fly off, even if he doesn't need to breathe-"

Again she was interrupted, this time by Ray who said "Strap me to it, I can cut the strap with my KA-BAR fighting knife easily."

Integra sighed and gave up trying to detract his request and said "Fine, but it isn't my responsibility if you get killed because of this stunt."

* * *

Ray felt a bit stupid as the Blackbird sped across the sky with him strapped to it, even more so when Alucard sends the damn thing into a direct course on the carrier as if the thing were a missile, Ray had some time however to think, and when it came down to it, he realized something, in his memories that he would not dwell on for now but still, it was a chance, a slim one, but possible.

He didn't need to cut the strap as a musket ball sped through, damaging and tearing through the blackbird and as a result the flying shrapnel and burning fuel cut it for him, he immediately began to freefall with the jet though he rearranged his position and focused on staying hidden, concealing his energies and even holding his breath and closing his eyes once he knew where he was going to fall.

Alucard slammed into the carrier long before Ray landed and had already easily dispatched the Millennium soldiers, for once Rip van Winkle seemed frightened beyond all recognition when facing down Alucard, it was an opening.

Alucard slowly approached, having caught the musket ball with his mouth as Rip fired at him. As Alucard crushed the ball with his mouth he noticed Ray dart head on at Rip van Winkle who noticed him barely as he drove his hand straight through her chest, not clutching her heart but rather her spine and continued his charge with his surprised target as she was slammed against the wall of the conning tower of the ship.

She looked at Ray's eyes before looking out at Alucard who was now merely watching the spectacle.

But she was not petrified of Ray, she reached to grab Ray's sword only for her hand to be burned by the silver construction, realizing he was wearing thick gloves to avoid that fate.

Ray looked directly in her eyes and said "I won't simply kill you, because of what you did back then, there is a slight chance I suppose, that two souls, not one, will live on. If it means those memories become my own, I will be willing to let your own memories live on as well."

She struggled but found she could no longer move her lower body as Ray had crushed her spine, granted it would be able to heal but nowhere near in time as he sunk his teeth into her neck and simultaneously with his free hand grabbed a throwing knife and stabbed at a nerve cluster in her upper back near the neckline, paralyzing her temporarily though as the blade was silver, perhaps it would be longer than usual for that to heal.

Time seemed to slow down for Ray as he did get what he wanted, only to be shocked at what he found.

* * *

Memory Access : Alice Kesari, one year ago.

* * *

She sighed as she looked out the window, her long black hair and naturally crimson red eyes as well as a flawless complexion made her appearance.

Her friend was still asleep though she cared little whether he was awake or not, eating away at her conscience was something she had done that he was unaware of, granted it would not take effect until he was either near death but regardless, she pondered at her own fate.

Millennium, remnants of the Nazi regime that were ordered to produce a vampire army had sought out her many years ago to find a corpse that as far as she knew, they were going to use it to find a cure for the affliction she endured for so long, only to realize they used it instead to spread the curse further. Since then she could no longer bring herself to feed and had entered a long state of hibernation in hopes that an acquaintance of hers would deal with the issue and when she woke she found out that he indeed did deal with the issue although his sense of humor (Taking her form) at times perplexed her.

She looked into a mini-freezer in her room that her current friend has acquired for her, inside was a sight that both confused her and satisfied her.

Blood packs, enough to last for quite some time and she knew the number would only increase with time. She had revealed her true nature to him though the specifics were different. She was a among a different breed of vampires than the ones who took the curse unto themselves or those whom the curse was forced upon. She however was born like this, with this thirst and the powers that she could employ if she wished, but it made her different, she could actively suppress the various memories and personalities that resided in her though her memories were all that would pass on should she be devoured, she kept note of this simple fact because she had found an opportunity to free herself of this curse.

She drained one of the bloodpacks and recalled the time she met her friend, Ray Zenji.

It was a dry night under a full moon and she had spotted him stargazing in northern california, he was on vacation at the time though he was alone as well at the time, at least when he was stargazing.

Ordinarily anyone's response would be to fight back so she snuck behind him, the thirst growing beyond her control.

For those whom curse themselves or are cursed by others the change would be instantaneous but for those whom are born cursed the change takes place only after substantial blood loss or when the heart ceases to beat for more than three seconds, it also however conferred an immunity to immediate change from others though still if they cursed another it would be different as they were ones whom were cursed by another.

This is why usually she left nothing left, completely devouring them to spare them the curse but this man was different, as she sunk her teeth into his neck from behind in the darkness he could not see his attacker and was caught offguard.

She wrapped her arms around him not in a struggle to keep him contained but rather a warm and loving embrace, as if trying to solace him in his final moments though his memories began to flood into her, she noticed something, a rare moment that occurs when one does not fight the attack.

His mind was linked with hers, the two shared their thoughts briefly, he read her thoughts and was confused at first before becoming permissive but with a request, that she spare him and in exchange he would provide her with what she requires. It was odd indeed though her running thoughts on the matter were indeed revealed to him as she dwelled on the issue every time she fed.

It was a moment that changed her, she wiped his memory of the attack but did not take more than was needed to satisfy the thirst and to keep him from bleeding out she injected though her fangs a good quantity of her own blood into him."

* * *

The memories flowed into him, he did not dwell on all of them though as he also learned something from van Winkle's own memories, that she had struck Kesari thinking she was Alucard in disguise and her own guilt about what she had done that night, not so much as the fate but for erasing his memories of the initial incident. To his memories he encountered her and she explained (and proved by phasing through a door) her nature but that initial encounter in the north as opposed to the chance encounter in the city had weighed on her so much that she allowed herself to die, suppressing her healing factor, something only a born vampire can do.

He dropped the lifeless and bloodless body of van Winkle whom oddly did not burst into flames like the other Millennium members, his eyes shifted red as the plans of the Major, the leader of Millennium became fresh in his mind.

He walked forward and brushed past Alucard who said "And how do you intend to cross the ocean?"

He took a look at him before saying "I am not like you, I was cursed by another, not by myself. I can cross large bodies of water with my powers. Whether or not I make it in time is another story."

Alucard had an itch to question him more on his newfound power but decided not to as Ray formed a shadow around him in the shape of bat like wings and he lept into the air, zig-zagging across the night sky and over the atlantic ocean.

Alucard however had to wait, he could however with his powers influence the motion of the ship, all he had to do now was proceed back, he had taken from Ray's mind what he needed to know.

* * *

To be continued...


End file.
